Schumer, King Join To Call For Vote On Background Check Bill

Standing in front of a Walmart in Westbury, Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Peter King joined together to call on the Senate to pass legislation to require universal background checks for gun purchases.

Schumer, a Democrat and the minority leader of the Senate, called for the passage of H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019. King, a Republican, was one of many co-sponsor of the bill and helped it get passed through the House of Representatives, where it passed 240-190 on Feb. 27. It was sent to the Senate, where it has remained blocked by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

The bill would require background checks for gun purchases between individuals. It would prohibit a sale between two people unless a licensed gun dealer first takes possession of the gun and conducts a background check on the purchaser. It would, in effect, create universal background checks for gun purchases.

Schumer and King came together to call on McConnell to allow the Senate to vote on the legislation.

“I’ve said it before and I will say it again: America’s citizenry is on the brink, suffering in pain for people they love, communities they call home and even strangers they have never met," Schumer said. "And the mangled tie that binds this suffering, this fear and this deep worry torturing every corner of the country now is rooted in the proliferation of semi-automatic assault weapons, their all-too-easy access and the loopholes that ensure their omnipresence.”

“There is no single law that can put an end to mass shootings or gun violence, but there are certainly proactive steps we can take to keep guns out of the hands of felons, domestic abusers and the dangerously mentally ill," said King. "When background checks are used, they keep guns out of the hands of people we all agree shouldn’t have guns. As government officials, it is our responsibility to protect our citizens, and when it comes to gun violence we must do more. The overwhelming majority of Americans want to see action, and we owe it to the victims and their families to prevent such tragedies from occurring again.”

Since the House passed the bill in February, more than 14,000 people have died from gun violence, Schumer and King said.

Federal law already requires licensed gun dealers to conduct background checks on gun purchasers and transferees, but this legislation would address a common loophole by requiring unlicensed gun sellers to perform background checks. While federal law prohibits certain people — including those with felony convictions, domestic abusers and those adjudicated mentally unfit — from obtaining or possessing firearms, major loopholes still allow people who should not possess a gun to legally acquire one. Loopholes in the background check law allow unlicensed sellers to sell guns at gun shows, online and person-to-person without conducting any background check on the purchaser. According to the Giffords Organization (a group founded by former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords to fight gun violence), up to 80 percent of firearms used for criminal purposes are obtained without a background check.

“Leader McConnell should, once-and-for-all, do the right thing and gavel the Senate into an emergency session so we can take immediate action on the bipartisan, already-passed gun safety legislation that Congressman King and other members of the House sent to the Senate in February— think about that, in February,” Schumer said.